Marry Me Chicken Pasta
This Marry Me Chicken Pasta has deliciously seasoned chicken, a homemade creamy cottage cheese sauce (no heavy cream!), sun-dried tomatoes and perfectly coated noodles. Whether you're making this for a special occasion or busy weeknight family dinner, this easy high-protein and gluten-free dish has you covered in under 30 minutes. Marriage proposal not included.
Servings: 5 servings
Calories: 539kcal
Ingredients
- 10 oz. Banza chickpea pasta shells
- 1 1/2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
- 1/2 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp. salt
- fresh cracked pepper
- 1 Tbsp. oil from sun-dried tomatoes
- 2 cups low-fat cottage cheese
- 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 Tbsp. oil from sun-dried tomatoes
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded 56g
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes 85g
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- fresh cracked pepper
- 1 1/2 cups spinach, packed
- basil for garnish
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the pasta shells, cook according to the package instructions. If using chickpea pasta, I like to undercook it by a minute so it doesn’t get mushy.
- Add the chicken, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to a large mixing bowl. Mix to evenly coat the chicken.
- In a large pan over medium heat, add the oil from the sundried tomatoes. Once hot, add the chicken and cook on each side untouched for 3-4 minutes or until cooked through and no longer pink.
- While the chicken cooks, add the cottage cheese, broth, garlic powder and oil from the sundried tomatoes in a high speed blender and blend until smooth and the cottage cheese is no longer chunky or chalky, approximately 4-5 minutes.
- Add the cooked and drained pasta to the pan with the chicken. Lower the heat to low and add the blended cottage cheese sauce, parmesan cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir to melt the cheese and heat the sauce over low heat to avoid clumping. You can also remove from the heat prior to adding the sauce to be sure you do not cause any clumping!
- Add the spinach and stir to wilt. Serve topped with freshly chopped basil, parmesan cheese and adjust with salt and pepper, as needed.
Notes
- Cook your pasta (especially if using chickpea pasta) until al dente to ensure the noodles don't get mushy.
- Be sure heat is on LOW before adding your sauce ingredients. This prevents it from watering down.
- Use your favorite type of noodles in place of chickpea shells.
- Nutritional information is an estimate and will vary with substitutions.
Nutrition
Serving: 350g | Calories: 539kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 58g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 118mg | Sodium: 1192mg | Potassium: 1147mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 4g
